Countermeasures
House lawmakers recently advanced the Federal CIO Authorization Act of 2018, which officials said strengthens national cybersecurity by elevating and reauthorizing the role of the Federal Chief Information Officer (CIO).
House IT Subcommittee Chair Will Hurd (R-TX) and Ranking Member Robin Kelly... Read More »
Andrew Scharnweber, a 22-year veteran of the U.S. Border Patrol, was selected in late November as Deputy Chief Patrol Agent for the agency’s Buffalo sector.
That new authority makes him one of the top figures governing the security of New York’s and Pennsylvania’s ports of entry. It also... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) recently launched a multiyear program dedicated to finding solutions to global positioning systems’ (GPS) vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure.
The program will conduct vulnerability and impact assessments,... Read More »
Policy leaders and scientific experts met in November to assess the impact of advances in technology on biological risks and brainstorm new ideas to address them.
The meeting -- sponsored by the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), Oxford University, and Johns Hopkins University -- included... Read More »
Walter Weaver was selected Nov. 29 as the new port director for the Port of Progreso.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Office of Field Operations, Laredo Field Office officials announced the selection at a change of command ceremony held at the Donna North High School Auditorium, in Donna,... Read More »
Researchers from the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine have generated six antibodies that could be used to test for and potentially treat the Zika virus.
To date, the mosquito-borne disease has afflicted more than 1.5 million people worldwide, but there is no effective vaccine... Read More »
The U.S. Air Force completed field testing last month of an improved chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) protective mask for crews on rotary wing aircraft.
The Joint Service Aircrew Mask – Rotary Wing replaces the Aircrew Eye and Respiratory Protection system on HH-60G Pave... Read More »
A group of U.S. Senators recently introduced legislation that would stop the United States from entering into a 21st Century nuclear arms race.
The Prevention of Arms Race Act of 2018 is sponsored by Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Edward Markey... Read More »
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) is urging progression toward the Navy meeting its goal of a 355-ship fleet, which became policy when President Donald Trump signed the Securing the Homeland by Increasing our Power on the Seas (SHIPS) Act into law last year.
Wicker, chairman of the Senate Seapower... Read More »
Federal officials are pushing for the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2018 (PAHPA), which was approved by the U.S. House of Representatives in September, to be signed into law this year.
In a discussion on Wednesday hosted by the Alliance for Biosecurity... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently praised the House advancement of legislation designed to reduce worldwide violence, enhance engagement, and address instability in other countries.
Reps. Michael McCaul (R-TX), Eliot L. Engel (D-NY), Ted Poe (R-TX), Adam Smith (D-WA) and Bill Keating (D-MA) said the... Read More »
As a means of expediting the acquisition process, Air Force officials recently awarded more than 100 contracts to small businesses in 40 hours.
Officials said personnel from varied departments met at the AFWERX Innovation Hub in Austin, Texas to streamline contracting processes and develop new... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently issued three recommendations to improve how the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inspects air carriers and assesses foreign airports in regards to U.S.-bound air cargo.
The GAO examined the TSA’s screening process to monitor the... Read More »
The Accident Response Group (ARG), a group of technical experts within the Department of Energy (DOE) meant to respond to nuclear weapons accidents, has been regrouped into the Military Liaison Department, more closely aligning it with military interests.
Department officials hope that this will... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate S&T will host an event for first responders in the Houston area on new technologies available to them.
The event -- called the Next Generation First Responder (NGFR) Harris County Operational Experimentation (OpEx)... Read More »
Lockheed Martin has contributed $1.5 million to the University of Central Florida (UCF) as a means of aiding the development of a new cyber research lab.
The Lockheed Martin Cyber Innovation Lab ensures UCF remains a leader in educating and empowering future cyber experts.
“Our... Read More »
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) has joined over 60 global health security organizations in calling for bolstered funding in the Trump Administration’s 2020 budget request to counter biological threats.
The groups forwarded correspondence to Secretary of Health and Human Services and Chair... Read More »
A team of international researchers began enrolling confirmed Ebola patients this week for clinical trial testing of multiple therapies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Organized by a research consortium coordinated by the World Health Organization (WHO), the trials are in response to... Read More »
Thanksgiving 2018 was the busiest travel period in the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA)17-year history.
More than 25.6 million passengers and crew members were screened, a 6 percent increase from 2017, and more than 15 million bags were checked.
The busiest travel day in... Read More »
A global initiative of public and private organizations is needed to eliminate computer-effecting botnets, according to a new paper from the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR).
The report was written by Robert Knake, senior fellow for cyber policy at CFR and senior research scientist at... Read More »
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) researchers have developed a device that enhances the efforts of first responders while treating patients in trauma-induced environments.
The patent-pending VitalTag is a stick-on sensor designed to measure and track a patient's vital signs to help... Read More »
In a leap forward for vaccination efforts, researchers from the University of Southern California (USC) have created a polio vaccine that maintains its usefulness without refrigeration.
Though initially believed to be entirely eradicated, there were 22 reported cases worldwide in 2017 due to its... Read More »
Zoobia Shahnaz, from Brentwood, New York, recently pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert to providing material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS).
Between March and August 2017, Shahnaz defrauded numerous financial institutions, according to prosecutors.... Read More »
Battelle was awarded earlier this month a 2018 R&D 100 Award for its creation of a web-based DNA screening platform for the detection and characterization of sequences of concern in genomic data.
The award-winning technology – called ThreatSEQ – is a commercial DNA screening solution that... Read More »
Declining stock prices caused by low returns on antibiotic research and development have caused companies to abandon antibiotic R&D, putting additional pressure on the few remaining companies focused on drug discovery.
This is according to a statement recently issued by the Infectious... Read More »
During the recent NATO-hosted Mediterranean Dialogue Conference, representatives from six nations shared intelligence insights as a means of broadening the scope of challenges the region faces.
The NATO Joint Intelligence and Security Division welcomed to the NATO Headquarters Intelligence... Read More »
Though a crucial and effective means of keeping Hazardous Materials (HazMat) first responders safe, training programs are often not fully implemented due to time constraints and budget cuts.
According to a paper written by independent CRBN consultant Debra Robinson, many personnel do not... Read More »
Five illegal aliens from El Salvador, currently wanted in their home country for various serious offenses, were deported last week by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations officers.
The fugitives were flown on a charter flight from the George Bush... Read More »
Kim Jong Yang of the Republic of Korea has been elected the new president of Interpol, a network of police forces from 194 countries around the world.
Kim has served as Interpol’s Vice President for Asia since 2015 and was the head of Interpol’s National Central Bureau in Seoul from 2011 to... Read More »
Reps. Will Hurd (R-TX) and Henry Cuellar (D-TX) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) recently secured a $1.6 million federal grant to increase the La Salle County Fire Rescue Department's staffing level.
The lawmakers said funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Staffing for... Read More »
Researchers from Vanderbilt University Medical Center and associates recently isolated a human antibody that could potentially neutralize the threat of West Nile virus, according to a report published last week in Nature Microbiology.
If so, it could lead to the first effective treatment of the... Read More »
The First Responder Network (FirstNet) Authority’s Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) recently appointed Todd Early as its new chairman.
Early has more than 25 years of leadership experience in public safety. He is Texas’ contact person for public safety communications and is assistant... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate is working with public safety officials in the Houston-area to evaluate first responder technologies.
DHS, along with industry partners and 13 local Houston-area public safety agencies on a HAZMAT-related scenario... Read More »
Merck has started the submission of a rolling Biologics License Application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for an investigational vaccine to combat the Zaire strain of the Ebola virus, the company recently announced.
The V920 vaccine, scientifically known as rVSV-ZEBOV, falls under... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is recommending the Navy conduct a business case analysis as part of an effort to address attack submarine maintenance delays.
The GAO said the effort would assist in pinpointing maintenance workload allocation across public and private... Read More »
